Virtues and Vices

Wherefore it seems to me that Solon had the
rich in mind when he said: 'We will not exchange our virtue for their
gold, for virtue is an everlasting possession, while riches are ever
changing owners.' Similarly Theognis said that the god, whatever he
might mean by the god, inclines the balances for men, now this way, now
that, giving to some riches, and to others poverty. Also Prodicus, the
sophist of Ceos, whose opinion we must respect, for he is a man not to
be slighted, somewhere in his writings expressed similar ideas about
virtue and vice. I do not remember the exact words, but as far as I
recollect the sentiment, in plain prose it ran somewhat as follows:
While Hercules was yet a youth, being about your age, as he was debating
which path he should choose, the one leading through toil to virtue, or
its easier alternate, two women appeared before him, who proved to be
Virtue and Vice. Though they said not a word, the difference between
them was at once apparent from their mien. The one had arranged herself
to please the eye, while she exhaled charms, and a multitude of delights
swarmed in her train. With such a display, and promising still more, she
sought to allure Hercules to her side. The other, wasted and squalid,
looked fixedly at him, and bespoke quite another thing. For she promised
nothing easy or engaging, but rather infinite toils and hardships, and
perils in every land and on every sea. As a reward for these trials, he
was to become a god, so our author has it. The latter, Hercules at
length followed.

St. Basil the Great: Address to Young Men on the Right use of
Greek Literature

...since also the renowned deeds of the men of
old either are preserved for us by tradition, or are cherished in the
pages of poet or historian, we must not fail to profit by them. A fellow
of the street rabble once kept taunting Pericles, but he, meanwhile,
gave no heed; and they held out all day, the fellow deluging him with
reproaches, but he, for his part, not caring. Then when it was evening
and dusk, and the fellow still clung to him, Pericles escorted him with
a light, in order that he might not fail in the practice of philosophy.
Again, a man in a passion threatened and vowed death to Euclid of Megara,
but he in turn vowed that the man should surely be appeased, and cease
from his hostility to him.
How invaluable it is to have such examples in mind
when a man is seized with anger! On the other hand, one must altogether
ignore the tragedy which says in so many words : 'Anger arms the hand
against the enemy;' for it is much better not to give way to anger at
all. But if such restraint is not easy, we shall at least curb our anger
by reflection, so as not to give it too much rein.
But let us bring our discussion back again to the
examples of noble deeds. A certain man once kept striking Socrates, the
son of Sophroniscus, in the face, yet he did not resent it, but allowed
full play to the ruffian's anger, so that his face was swollen and
bruised from the blows. Then when he stopped striking him, Socrates did
nothing more than write on his forehead, as an artisan on a statue, who
did it, and thus took out his revenge. Since these examples almost
coincide with our teachings, I hold that such men are worthy of
emulation. For this conduct of Socrates is akin to the precept that to
him who smites you upon the one cheek, you shall turn the other also —
thus much may you be avenged; the conduct of Pericles and of Euclid also
conforms to the precept: 'Submit to those who persecute you, and endure
their wrath with meekness;' and to the other: 'Pray for your enemies and
curse them not.' One who has been instructed in the pagan examples will
no longer hold the Christian precepts impracticable. But I will not
overlook the conduct of Alexander, who, on taking captive the daughters
of Darius, who were reputed to be of surpassing beauty, would not even
look at them, for he deemed it unworthy of one who was a conqueror of
men to be a slave to women. This is of a piece with the statement that
he who looks upon a woman to lust after her, even though he does not
commit the act of adultery, is not free from its guilt, since he has
entertained impure thoughts. It is hard to believe that the action of
Cleinias, one of the disciples of Pythagoras, was in accidental
conformity to our teachings, and not designed imitation of them. What,
then, was this act of his? By taking an oath he could have avoided a
fine of three talents, yet rather than do so he paid the fine, though he
could have sworn truthfully. I am inclined to think that he had heard of
the precept which forbids us to swear.

St. Basil the Great: Address to Young Men on the Right use of
Greek Literature

When the heart feels the arrows of the demons
with such burning pain that the man under attack suffers as if they were
real arrows, then the soul hates the passions violently, for it is just
beginning to be purified. It if does not suffer greatly at the
shamelessness of sin, it will not be able to rejoice fully in the
blessings of righteousness. He who wishes to cleanse his heart should
keep it continually aflame through practising the remembrance of the
Lord Jesus, making this his only study and his ceaseless task. Those who
desire to free themselves from their corruption ought to pray not merely
from time to time but at all times; they should give themselves always
to prayer, keeping watch over their intellect even when outside places
of prayer. When someone is trying to purify gold, and allows the fire of
the furnace to die down even for a moment, the material which he is
purifying will harden again. So, too, a man who merely practises the
remembrance of God from time to time, loses through lack of continuity
what he hopes to gain through his prayer. It is a mark of one who truly
loves holiness that he continually burns up what is worldly in his heart
through practising the remembrance of God, so that little by little evil
is consumed in the fire of this remembrance and his soul completely
recovers its natural brilliance with still greater glory.

St Diadochos of Photiki: On Spiritual Knowledge

To those who are just beginning to long for
holiness the path of virtue seems very rough and forbidding. It appears
like this not because it really is difficult, but because our human
nature from the womb is accustomed to the wide roads of sensual
pleasure. But those who have travelled more than half its length find
the path of virtue smooth and easy. For when a bad habit has been
subjected to a good one through the energy of grace it is destroyed
along with the remembrance of mindless pleasures; and thereafter the
soul gladly journeys on all the ways of virtue. Thus, when the Lord
first leads us into the path of salvation, He says: 'How narrow and
strait is the way leading to the kingdom and few there are who follow
it' (cf. Matt. 7: 14); but to those who have firmly resolved to keep His
holy commandments He says: 'For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light'
(Matt. I I : 30). At the beginning of the struggle, therefore, the holy
commandments of God must be fulfilled with a certain forcefulness of
will (cf. Matt. 1 1 : I 2); then the Lord, seeing our intention and
labour, will grant us readiness of will and gladness in obeying His
purposes. For 'it is the Lord who makes ready the will' (Prov. 8: 3 r;.
LXX), so that we always do what is right joyfully. Then shall we truly
feel that 'it is God who energizes in you both the willing and the doing
of His purpose' (Phil. 2: 13).

St Diadochos of Photiki: On Spiritual Knowledge

Since we have spoken of the knowledge of the
virtues, we will also speak about the passions. Knowledge comes like
light from the sun. The foolish man through lack of faith or laziness
deliberately closes his eyes - that is, his faculty of choice - and at
once consigns the knowledge to oblivion because in his indolence he
fails to put it into practice. For folly leads to indolence, and this in
turn begets inertia and hence forgetfulness. Forgetfulness breeds
self-love - the love of one's own will and thoughts - which is
equivalent to the love of pleasure and praise. From self-love comes
avarice, the root of all evils (cf. 1 Tim. 6 : 10), for it entangles us
in worldly concerns and in this way leads to complete unawareness of
God's gifts and of our own faults. It is now that the eight ruling
passions take up residence: gluttony, which leads to unchastity, which
breeds avarice, which gives rise to anger when we fail to attain what we
want - that is, fail to have our own way. This produces dejection, and
dejection engenders first listlessness and then self-esteem; and
self-esteem leads to pride. From these eight passions come every evil,
passion and sin. Those consumed by them are led to despair and utter
destruction; they fall away from God and become like the demons, as has
already been said.

St. Peter of Damascus: A Treasury of Divine Knowledge

From knowledge, or understanding, is born
self-control and patient endurance. For the man of understanding
restrains his own will and endures the resulting pain; and, regarding
himself as unworthy of anything pleasant, he is grateful and thankful to
his Benefactor, fearing lest because of the many blessings that God has
given him in this world he should suffer punishment in the world to
come. Thus through self-control he practises the other virtues as well.
He looks on himself as in God's debt for everything, finding nothing
whatsoever with which to repay to his Benefactor, and even thinking that
his virtues simply increase his debt. For he receives and has nothing to
give. He only asks that he may be allowed to offer thanks to God. Yet
even the fact that God accepts his thanks puts him, so he thinks, into
still greater debt. But he continues to give thanks, ever doing what is
good and reckoning himself an ever greater debtor, in his humility
considering himself lower than all men, delighting in God his Benefactor
and trembling even as he rejoices (cf. Ps. 2 : 11 ).
As he advances through this humility towards divine
and unfailing love, he accepts sufferings as though he deserved them.
Indeed, he thinks he deserves more suffering than he encounters; and he
is glad that he has been granted some affliction in this world, since
through it he may be spared a portion of the punishments which he has
prepared for himself in the world to be. And because in all this he
knows his own weakness, and that he should not exult, and because he has
been found worthy of knowing and enduring these things by the grace of
God, he is filled with a strong longing for God.

St. Peter of Damascus: A Treasury of Divine Knowledge

The blessed apostle offers as a summary of
salvation the perfection of these three virtues. `Now,' he says, `these
three things remain - faith, hope, love' (1 Cor. 13:13). For it is faith
- with its fear of the judgement and punishment to come - which brings
about the decline of sin's contagion. It is hope which draws our mind
from the things of the present and which in its anticipation of heavenly
rewards spurns all the pleasures of the body. And it is love which fires
us to long for Christ, to be zealous for the fruit of the spiritual
virtues and to detest utterly whatever is contrary to these virtues.

St. John Cassian

If a person's purpose is fixed in God with all
humility and he patiently endures the trials that come upon him, God
will resolve for him any question that perplexes him and perhaps even
[that which] leads him into delusion. Then, greatly ashamed but full of
joy, he turns back, seeking the path of the fathers. For, as St John
Klimakos states, we should regard what happens according to God's will,
and nothing else, as coming from grace for our good, even though in
itself it is not very good. Without such patience and humility a person
will suffer what many have suffered, perishing in their stupidity,
trusting to their own opinions and thinking they can get along very well
without either a guide or the experience that comes from patience and
humility. For experience transcends tribulation, trials and even active
warfare. Should a person of experience be subject to some slight attack
on the part of the demons, this trial will be a source of great joy and
profit to him; for it is permitted by God so that he may gain yet
further experience and courage in facing his enemies.
The signs that he has done this are tears, contrition
of soul before God, flight into stillness and patient recourse to God, a
diligent inquiry into the Scriptures and a desire, based on faith, to
accomplish God's purpose. When, on the other hand, a person lacks
patience and humility, the signs of this are doubt with regard to God's
help, being ashamed to ask questions humbly, avoidance of stillness and
the reading of Scripture, a love of distraction and of human company,
with the idea - entirely misguided - that one will attain a state of
repose in this way. On the contrary, it is now that the passions find an
opportunity to put down roots, and that trials and temptations grow
stronger, while one's own pusillanimity [cowardice, faint-heartedness],
ingratitude and listlessness wax because of one's abounding ignorance.

St. Peter of Damascus: A Treasury of
Divine Knowledge

“What
man is he that desireth life and to see good days? Keep thy tongue from
evil, and thy lips that they speak no guile: depart from evil and do
good” (Ps. 34:12-14, cf. 1 St. Peter 3:10-11). Evil means gluttony,
drunkenness and dissolute living. Evil means love of money, being greedy
for gain, and injustice. Evil means vainglory, arrogance and pride. Let
everyone turn aside from such vices and do those things which are good.
What are they? Self-control, fasting, chastity, right­eousness,
almsgiving, forbearance, love, humility. That by so doing we may worthily
partake of the Lamb of God who was sacrificed for our sake, and so receive
the earnest of incorruption, and keep it as an assurance of the
inheritance promised to us in heaven. Is it hard to do what is good, and
are the virtues more difficult than the vices? That is certainly not how I
see it. The drunken, self-indulgent person subjects himself because of
this to more sufferings than someone who restrains himself; the licentious
person suffers more than someone chaste; someone striving to become rich
more than someone who lives in contentment with what he has; the person
seeking to surround himself with glory than someone who passes his life in
obscurity. Since, however, the virtues seem more difficult to us because
of our love of comfort, let us force ourselves. “The kingdom of heaven
suffereth violence”, it says, “and the violent take it by force”
(St. Matthew 11:12).

All
of us, eminent and lowly, governors and governed, rich and poor, need
diligence and attention to drive these evil passions away from our souls,
and introduce the whole range of virtues in their stead. Farmers,
shoemakers, builders, tailors, weavers and in general all those who earn
their living by their own effort and the work of their hands, provided
they throw out of their souls the desire for riches, glory and pleasure,
are truly blessed. These are the poor to whom the kingdom of heaven
belongs. It was on their account that the Lord said, “Blessed are the
poor in spirit” (St. Matthew 5:3). The poor in spirit are those whose
spirits, or souls, are free from boasting, love of glory and fondness for
pleasure, and therefore either choose to be poor in external things as
well or else courageously bear involun­tary poverty. Those who are rich
and comfortable, and enjoy fleeting glory, and in general all who long to
be like them, will yield to more harmful passions and fall into other
worse traps of the devil, which are more difficult to deal with. When
someone becomes rich, he does not lay aside his desire for riches, but
increases it, grasping at more than he did before. In the same way,
pleasure lovers, power seekers, the dissolute and the debauched increase
their desires rather than renouncing them. Rulers and eminent men increase
their power so as to commit greater injustices and sin.

That
is why it is difficult for a ruler to be saved or for a rich man to enter
the kingdom of heaven. “How can ye believe”, it says, “which receive
honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God
only?” (St. John 5:44). But if any of you are well off, or eminent or
rulers, do not be dismayed. You can, if you wish, seek the glory of God
and exert force on yourselves to stop the impetus towards becoming worse,
to practise great virtues and to drive away great evils, not just from
yourselves, but from many other people, even against their will. Not only
can you act honestly and chastely yourselves, but there are many ways in
which you can prevent those who want to be unjust and licentious from
doing so. Not only can you show yourselves obedient to Christ’s Gospel
and His teachings, but you can also bring those who are minded to disobey
into subjection to Christ’s Church and its leaders according to Christ.
This you are able to do, not just by means of the power and authority
allotted to you by God, but by becoming an example of all that is good to
those below you. For subjects become like their rulers.

Man is a twofold being comprising soul and
body, and has two orders of senses and two corresponding orders of
virtues. The soul has five senses and the body five. The senses of the
soul, which are also called the faculties, are intellect, reason,
opinion, fantasy and sense-perception. The senses of the body are
sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch. The virtues which belong to
these senses are twofold and so, too, are the vices. Everyone should
know how many virtues there are of the soul and how many of the body,
and what kind of passions belong to the soul and what kind to the
body. The virtues which we ascribe to the soul are primarily the four
cardinal virtues: courage, moral judgment, self-restraint and justice.
These give birth to the other virtues of the soul: faith, hope, love,
prayer, humility, gentleness, long-suffering, forbearance, kindness,
freedom from anger, knowledge of God, cheerfulness, simplicity,
calmness, sincerity, freedom from vanity, freedom from pride, absence
of envy, honesty, freedom from avarice, compassion, mercifulness,
generosity, fearlessness, freedom from dejection, deep compunction,
modesty, reverence, desire for the blessings held in store, longing
for the kingdom of God, and aspiration for divine sonship.

Besides these there are the bodily
virtues or, rather, the tools or instruments of virtue. When used with
understanding, in accordance with God's will, and without the least
hypocrisy or desire to win men's esteem, they make it possible to
advance in humility and dispassion. They are self-control, fasting,
hunger, thirst, staying awake, keeping all-night vigils, constant
kneeling, not washing, the wearing of a single garment, eating dry
food, eating slowly, drinking nothing but water, sleeping on the
ground, poverty, total shedding of possessions, austerity, disregard
of personal appearance, unselfishness, solitude, preserving stillness,
not going out, enduring scarcity, being self-supporting, silence,
working with your own hands, and every kind of hardship and physical
asceticism, with other similar practices. When the body is strong and
disturbed by carnal passions, they are all indispensable and extremely
beneficial. When the body is weak, however, and with the help of God
has overcome these passions, such practices are not as vital as holy
humility and thanksgiving, which suffices for everything.

Something should also be said about the
vices or the passions of the soul and the body. The passions of the
soul are forgetfulness, laziness and ignorance. When the soul's eye,
the intellect, has been darkened by these three, the soul is dominated
by all the other passions. These are impiety, false teaching. or every
kind of heresy, blasphemy, wrath, anger, bitterness, irritability,
inhumanity, rancour, back-biting, censoriousness, senseless dejection,
fear, cowardice, quarrelsomeness, jealousy, envy, self-esteem, pride,
hypocrisy, falsehood, unbelief, greed, love of material things,
attachment to worldly concerns, listlessness, faint-heartedness,
ingratitude, grumbling, vanity, conceit, pomposity, boastfulness, love
of power, love of popularity, deceit, shamelessness, insensibility,
flattery, treachery, pretence, indecision, assent to sins arising from
the soul's passible aspect and dwelling on them continuously,
wandering thoughts, self-love, the mother of vices, avarice, the root
of all evil (cf. I Tim. 6 : 10) and, finally, malice
and guile.

The passions of the body are gluttony, greed,
over-indulgence, drunkenness, eating in secret, general softness of
living, unchastity, adultery, licentiousness, uncleanness, incest,
pederasty, bestiality, impure desires and every passion which is foul
and unnatural, theft, sacrilege, robbery, murder, every kind of
physical luxury and gratification of the whims of the flesh
(especially when the body is in good health), consulting oracles,
casting spells, watching for omens and portents, self-adornment,
ostentation, foolish display, use of cosmetics, painting the face,
wasting time, day-dreaming, trickery, impassioned misuse of the
pleasures of this world, and a life of bodily ease, which by
coarsening the intellect makes it cloddish and brute-like and never
lets It raise itself towards God and the practice of the virtues.

The roots or primary causes of all these passions
are love of sensual pleasure, love of praise and love of material
wealth. Every evil has its origin in these. As Mark, wisest of the
ascetics, says, a man cannot commit a single sin unless the three
powerful giants, forgetfulness, laziness and ignorance, first
overpower him and enslave him, And these giants are the offspring of
sensual pleasure, luxury, love of men's esteem, and distraction. The
primary cause and vile mother of them all is self-love, which is a
senseless love of one's body and an impassioned attachment to it. A
dispersed and dissipated intellect given to frivolous talk and foul
language produces many vices and sins. Laughter and loose, immodest
speech also lead to sin.